Federal Sentences in the Middle District of Louisiana, FY2016–2025
In the Middle District of Louisiana, 35% of guilty pleas in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 were straight pleas, entered without a written plea agreement. The district sentenced 1,289 people in those years. Those sent to prison received a median term of 37 months (3.1 years), compared with 24 months for a
Understanding Trends in Military Practice · 6 min read
Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Middle District of Louisiana
In brief: In the Middle District of Louisiana, 35% of guilty pleas in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 were straight pleas, entered without a written plea agreement. The district sentenced 1,289 people in those years. Those sent to prison received a median term of 37 months (3.1 years), compared with 24 months for all 94 federal districts.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 1,289 people sentenced in federal court in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. Acquittals and dismissals come from a second source, the Federal Judicial Center's records of 753,808 federal defendants whose cases ended in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. It is part of the Federal Prosecution Analysis series, which builds on Military Moves Toward Sentencing Guidelines to Mirror the Federal System. How the numbers were built: How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built.
Many Guilty Pleas Came Without an Agreement
1,242 of the 1,289 people (96%) pleaded guilty. For all districts the guilty plea rate was 97%. 47 people in this district were convicted after a trial.
Among the guilty pleas, 65% had a written plea agreement with the government. The remaining 35% were straight pleas, meaning the person pleaded guilty with no agreement.
The records show whether an agreement existed. They do not show its terms or what either side gave up.
How Prison Terms Compared With the National Median
1,139 of the 1,289 (88%) received a prison term. The national share was 91%. 138 people (11%) received probation only.
For people sent to prison, the median term was 37 months. A quarter received 77 months or more, and a quarter received 12 months or less. 1 person received a life sentence.
The median after a guilty plea was 36 months. After a trial it was 120 months, based on 46 people convicted at trial and sent to prison. These are terms imposed, not time served.
Sentences Below the Range Without a Government Request
Guideline position is recorded for 1,278 people. 663 of them (52%) were sentenced within the guideline range, higher than the 48% for all districts.
333 (26%) received a sentence below the range without a government request. 248 (19%) were sentenced below the range at the government's request. 34 people (3%) received a sentence above the range.
A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 295 people (23%). It is a minimum set by statute, and the data does not show whether it controlled the final term.
Which Offenses Were Sentenced Most?
Drug trafficking was the most common offense type, with 357 people (28%) and a median prison term of 60 months. Firearms followed with 294 (23%) and a median of 42 months.
Fraud, theft, or embezzlement totaled 261 people (20%), with a median of 18 months. Immigration accounted for 178 (14%), with a median of 6 months, and all of them pleaded guilty.
Smaller groups include child pornography (images of child exploitation), with 35 people and a median of 96 months, and sexual abuse, with 23 people and a median of 180 months.
| Offense type | People sentenced | Share of district | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Drug Trafficking | 357 | 28% | 60 months | 96% |
| Firearms | 294 | 23% | 42 months | 97% |
| Fraud/Theft/Embezzlement | 261 | 20% | 18 months | 95% |
| Immigration | 178 | 14% | 6 months | 100% |
| Child Pornography | 35 | 3% | 96 months | 97% |
| Administration of Justice | 23 | 2% | 15 months | 100% |
| Sexual Abuse | 23 | 2% | 180 months | 87% |
| Obscenity/Other Sex Offenses | 16 | 1% | 29 months | 100% |
Criminal History and Post-Prison Terms
41% of people sentenced were in category I, the lowest criminal history category. 13% were in category VI, the highest. Court-martial records include no criminal history field.
912 people (71%) were ordered to serve supervised release after prison. The median term was 36 months, and 2 people (less than 1%) received it for life. A fine was ordered for 110 (9%), and restitution for 286 (22%).
The District's Caseload by Year
674 people were sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2019. 615 were sentenced in fiscal years 2020 to 2025.
Yearly counts were 95 in both 2024 and 2025. The median prison term in 2025 was 23 months, lower than the median in any year from 2020 to 2024. One year of data does not establish a trend.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 163 | 28 months | 96% |
| 2017 | 171 | 36 months | 98% |
| 2018 | 154 | 30 months | 95% |
| 2019 | 186 | 35 months | 94% |
| 2020 | 123 | 36.5 months | 98% |
| 2021 | 103 | 46 months | 98% |
| 2022 | 103 | 46 months | 97% |
| 2023 | 96 | 48 months | 97% |
| 2024 | 95 | 47 months | 95% |
| 2025 | 95 | 23 months | 98% |
What These Numbers Do Not Cover
The Sentencing Commission data includes only people convicted and sentenced. People acquitted at trial and people whose cases were dismissed do not appear. The records also do not describe the facts of any case or the reasons behind any sentence.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Middle District of Louisiana (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Louisiana Middle") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 (1,289). Offense types are the Commission's OFFGUIDE categories.
Federal fiscal years run from October 1 to September 30. No person, judge, or lawyer is identified in any of these records.
What to Keep in Mind
No parole in federal prison; credit for good conduct. Federal prison has no parole for crimes committed on or after November 1, 1987. A federal prisoner can earn up to 54 days of good conduct credit for each year of the sentence the judge imposed, which is about 15%. Some federal prisoners can also earn First Step Act time credits, but many offenses make a person ineligible. The numbers in this post are the sentences judges imposed, not the time people actually served.
Federal supervised release. Most federal prison sentences are followed by a term of supervised release that the judge sets as part of the sentence. A person who violates it can be sent back to prison. A court-martial cannot sentence anyone to supervision after release. Military parole and mandatory supervised release are decided later by a board, not by the judge at trial.
Who decides the sentence, and under what rules. Federal judges sentence every federal case. They must calculate the Sentencing Guidelines range, which is advisory, and must impose any mandatory minimum the statute requires unless an exception applies. In courts-martial, the accused could choose sentencing by members until the rules changed. For cases in which every guilty finding is for an offense committed after December 27, 2023, a military judge sentences alone, within sentencing parameters. Courts-martial tried in 2024 and later include both old-rule and new-rule cases, and the data cannot tell them apart.
Time periods. Federal numbers are by federal fiscal year (October 1 to September 30), based on the sentencing date. The military numbers are by trial date. Neither source has the date of the offense, so a change in law shows up in either data set gradually.
How life sentences and "time served" are counted. In the federal numbers, a life sentence is counted as 470 months, and any other sentence longer than 470 months is counted as just under 470 months. A sentence of "time served" is counted as one day (0.03 months). Averages are affected by these rules; medians much less.
Mandatory minimum sentences. Many federal statutes on drugs, images of child exploitation, child sex abuse, and firearms carry mandatory minimum prison terms. The UCMJ has mandatory minimums only for a few offenses (a dishonorable discharge or dismissal for rape and sexual assault, and life for premeditated murder). Federal sentences for these offenses are partly set by Congress, not by the judge.
Related Analysis
- Military Moves Toward Sentencing Guidelines to Mirror the Federal System (the background article)
- Federal Prosecution Analysis (all federal posts)
- How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built (sources and method)
- How Often Federal Judges Sentence Outside the Guideline Range
- Mandatory Minimums: How Many Federal Sentences Are Set by Congress
- U.S. Sentencing Commission, Individual Offender Datafiles (source)
- Federal Judicial Center, Integrated Database (criminal defendants) (source)
About the author. Jocelyn C. Stewart is a retired Army JAG with more than 24 years of trying courts-martial and more than 200 jury trials. She hosts Where All The Bodies Are Buried and runs the Law Office of Jocelyn C. Stewart. This analysis is for education and information only. It is not legal advice, and every case is different.